Noida: The 3.5-km stretch of Vishwakarma Road, from Sector 59 metro station to the Sector 62 junction at NH-9, remains a major choke point during rush hours despite being one of the widest corridors in the city.Over 40 feet wide, with U-turns for a signal-free commute and dedicated service lanes on both sides, the road serves as a key mobility link between Delhi, Ghaziabad and Noida and houses several offices, hospitals, educational institutions and manufacturing units. Traffic spillover from multiple cuts connecting residential and commercial hubs along the route adds to the volume, while unauthorised and haphazardly parked autos and e-rickshaws near the stretch’s three metro stations, along with roadside encroachments, add to the squeeze.Vikram Sharma, a Sector 62 resident who regularly uses the stretch to commute to Anand Vihar, told TOI that during off-peak hours, it hardly took him about 15 minutes to cross the stretch. “But during peak traffic hours, it could extend well beyond 40 minutes,” he said.So, what leads to the daily gridlock?A comprehensive survey carried out last year showed that the stretch witnessed daily traffic of over 50,000 vehicles. But commuters feel the squeeze as autos and e-rickshaws block turns and access across the stretch — right at the NH-9 entry point into Sector 62 to the stretches next to the three metro stations.
Auto and e-ricks occupy road near the Electronic City metro station
Sunil Kumar, a commuter caught in Thursday’s rush hour traffic, said e-rickshaws frequently halt mid-road near markets, metro stations and society gates, creating bottlenecks.Residents also flagged growing encroachment on roads, footpaths and green belts outside the offices, hospitals and educational institutes by unauthorised vendors, forcing pedestrians onto the carriageway.“Traffic crawls at intersections near Khoda Mandi, Labour chowk to NIB chowk, and Mamura chowk, where pushcarts, parked vehicles and e-rickshaws choke the carriageway. Traffic cops have not been deployed at Khoda Mandi intersection despite a recent meeting with CP Lakshmi Singh on the issue,” Gopal Sharma, Rajat Vihar RWA general secretary, said.
Auto and e-rickshaw drivers occupy the road near Sector 62 metro station
Rajendra Kumar Uprety of Sector 62 said wrong-side driving, particularly by e-rickshaws and autos amid the daily rush to offices, factories and colleges, has made the stretch accident-prone. He cited poor enforcement around metro stations and commercial complexes in the adjoining Nevada village as a key cause.“Sector 62 faces severe traffic congestion, a spike in chain snatching and burglaries, and frequent stray cattle incidents causing serious injuries — all with little effective intervention from authorities,” said Surendra Kumar Gupta, president of the Federation of Sector 62 RWAs.How Noida plans to decongest stretch?Noida Authority has begun clearing bottlenecks near sectors 62, 63 and NH-9, with officials claiming that a public toilet at the Sector 62 junction, flagged as an obstruction, has been removed. It said work has started on a 530-metre circular skywalk over the roundabout to create a grade-separated pedestrian corridor.Authority’s general manager SP Singh told TOI a broader plan was in place to ease commuting between Sector 62 and Mamura, including removal of unauthorised vendors, widening of roads and U-turns. “We have issued a tender to hire an agency for this project. We aim to fix this road in six months,” he said.The reclaimed toilet site, DCP (Traffic) Abhay Kumar Mishra said, is likely to be used as a dedicated stand for autos and e-rickshaws heading towards Vijay Nagar, Khoda and Anand Vihar, with a connecting road to NH-9. He added that a green belt is planned nearby. Mishra said congestion had eased somewhat after part of the Sector 62 underpass, shut for CISF work, reopened on June 10. Using AI-based and control room monitoring, travel time on the stretch during peak hour had been cut, he said, with marshals deployed daily to clear encroachment.“The traffic department currently has 46 sub-inspectors and 29 marshals, with peak-hour deployment at high-pressure spots, including sectors 62, 63, 51 and 18, besides Chhajarsi, Dadri and Dankaur,” Mishra added.
